The heart of our mission is to find the amazing souls that breathe life into our communities. In the recent weeks, we’ve had the privilege to connect with some incredible artists, creatives, entrepreneurs and rabble rousers and we can’t begin to express how impressed we are with the incredible group below.
Luke Ring
Unlike many emerging directors his age, 21-year-old filmmaker Luke Ring did not grow into his voice on a film-school campus or inside a studio backlot. His story begins quietly, on the shoreline of Lake Michigan, where he spent most of his life in Saint Joseph Michigan. Read more>>
Carita Miller
My name is Carita Miller (pronounced Car-Rita), and my journey in entertainment began long before I ever stepped into the business side of music. I grew up surrounded by creativity and storytelling, which naturally led me into dance and television at a young age. I appeared on a local Detroit TV show, which sparked my love for performance and culture. Read more>>
Rebecca Grewal
My career began in New York, in the Brooklyn neighborhood of Fort Greene at Pratt Institute. After spending my first four years focusing on apparel design and learning from truly excellent masters. Read more>>
Claire Mahler
I have always been interested in sustainability and wanted a career change, so I quit teaching after the pandemic with the hope of opening a low-waste refillery. I opened 86 Plastic in April of 2022 and have been helping people find reusable or refillable replacements for everyday home and body items. As of today we have refilled 16,015 single-use containers. Read more>>
Kelly Larson
Kelly Larson’s journey into the ice cream world began early. At just 15, she took her first job at Temptations, not knowing it would become the foundation of her entire career. By the time she was 19, her parents purchased the store, and Kelly stepped naturally into a larger role while balancing school and work. Read more>>
William Braylock
“EKDADF actually started as a clothing line I created with my daughter. It was just our way of promoting positive fatherhood. But as people connected with the message, I realized fathers needed more than a slogan on a shirt—they needed support, accountability, and real tools to change their lives. Read more>>
Addison Jarecki
Been a bit since we last talked, Voyage! Thanks for having me back. My career at this point has led me to sports creative – I am a photographer and social media professional. I got started in the space by working for my high school marching band. Read more>>
Yvonne Rakestraw
I didn’t start this journey with money, connections, or a clear map. I started with a daughter to raise, bills to pay, and a fire in me that wouldn’t let me settle. Bartending was supposed to be temporary, but it became the one space where I felt in control, creative, and confident. Read more>>
Aaron DeShields
I am an artist, craftsman, and educator based in Detroit, Michigan. I grew up in North Carolina, My father was a machinist and my mother was a teacher. This upbringing brought me close to the machines and methods in which I produce my work. I was interested in art at an early age and pursued that through my high school and college years. Read more>>
Nandita Bajaj
The idea for our place took foundation when we started teaching in various locations about 5 years back. Read more>>
Amber Zoll
For as long as I can remember, ultrasound has been more than a career to me it has been a calling. I’ve been a registered sonographer for nearly 18 years, and every day I’m reminded of how special it is to give families their first glimpse of their little one. Read more>>
Edward Parry
My name is Edward Parry, and I’m the President/Founder of Culture Corner Detroit. Culture Corner Detroit was born from a simple idea: create a space where culture, community, and creativity could thrive together. Growing up in Detroit, I saw firsthand how much talent, history, and pride lived in our neighborhoods — but we also saw gaps. Read more>>
Anna Maria
My story started 5 years ago when I was in my fourth year of college. The Lord touched my heart to turn my love of Photography into a business. I remember it very clearly because I was supposed to be working on an assignment for class and instead I ended up writing down price sheets and packages for photography. Read more>>
Jennifer Poynter
Where to even start, but way back at the beginning when GG bought this small town Cafe in 1985, putting her 6 kids to work. Enter myself in 1986, followed by 26 more grand children, and an ever growing army of great grand children. Creating a place where patrons became friends, who then became family. Read more>>
Peter Bernal
I was raised in a working class Tejano family in southeast Texas, descended from farmers, ranchers and laborers. I knew early on that I was a visual thinker, and was able to convey things with images that I couldn’t with words. I learned some basics of drawing from my cousin Benny, who is today a great artist. Read more>>
Christopher Slater
My journey as an entrepreneur began long before I officially launched Initial Brands Incorporated or opened the doors to IBrandU. I’ve always had a passion for creativity, business strategy, and building something that feels bigger than myself. Read more>>
Chef Lovely Churchwell
I knew as early as ten years old what I wanted to be. I used to watch my mother closely as she worked many years in food service and even hosted many of events at our home, inspired my career. I set my heart on becoming a pastry chef—and I did. Read more>>
Ben Thaxton
Been tracking a bad aortic valve for about 10 years, first discovered 2015 when I had tingling feet and hands during workouts. Discovered a valve that was allowing regurgitation (back flow), causing my heart to work harder every beat, my whole life. Cardiologist informed me at my annual follow up this year, that it is time to do something, soon. Read more>>
Adria Moses
I usually tell people that my work didn’t start in a studio or a classroom; it started in a hospital. I’ve lived with chronic illness since I was 12 years old, and so much of my life has been shaped by learning to navigate pain, uncertainty, and systems that weren’t built for bodies like mine. Read more>>
Katherine Farr
I have always loved decorating. As a kid my room was my canvas – I enjoyed decorating, rearranging, and styling my belongings inside that space. In one house we lived in I even took over a barely finished room to make it my own. I got to decorate it how I wanted. At 19 I started painting and realized how much I enjoyed it. Read more>>
Markie Zimmer
I started out by simply rock hunting. I acquired so many rocks and wanted to do something with them. I wanted to make a Leland Blue ring for my ‘something blue’ in my wedding, so I did it. Read more>>
Sarah Snider
Poetess & Stranger started as a way for me to free myself from working for other people. The older I get the more autonomy becomes important to me. It’s a fact that women make less in every field, are decision enforcers but not decision makers, and hold fewer positions of power. Read more>>
SOUMYA SREERAM
Early Journey My path began with a deep love for art and its ability to evoke emotion and connection. I started creating works that explored color, form, and storytelling, always with the intention of making art feel accessible and resonant for people from all walks of life. VIBGYOR LIVE This vision led me to found VIBGYOR LIVE, a platform dedicated to emotionally resonant art. Read more>>
Mackenzie Flohr
I was born and raised in Strongsville, Ohio, and grew up as an only child in a home where creativity and education were incredibly important. My mother enrolled me in a well-regarded private school in Parma Heights, rooted in Catholic tradition. While the academics were strong, many of the experiences I had there were deeply difficult and shaped me in ways I’m still unpacking. Read more>>
Erin Lyon
Makenzie Aney is the inspiration behind Kenzie’s Be Cafe. Makenzie or Kenzie was born 13 weeks premature with cerebral palsy. She was the length of a $1 bill and in the hospital for 12 weeks. Today, she is a strong, spunky young woman and has recently graduated from Mona Shores High School. Erin Lyon, Kenzie’s aunt, has always been inspired by Kenzie’s spirit. Read more>>
Shauna Speet
When I was fresh out of design school, I lacked something crucial: experience. I was too young to have the knowledge and experience of how a kitchen flowed, how a room needs to be able to change when hosting a gathering, or how vital a drop zone is when entering the home with your arms full. Read more>>
Carter Damaska
Like many others in this field, my career started as a hobby. I enjoyed taking photos of my siblings along the sandy beach during golden hour by Lake Michigan. As I taught myself more about cameras and how to use them, more people came to me asking to go on a little photoshoot. From there, my hobby quickly became a business! Read more>>
Aisha Gatlin
Aisha Gatlin is a licensed cosmetologist, educator and visionary entrepreneur reshaping the future of beauty education. As the Founder and Director of Education at Beautiful Luxe School of Cosmetology, she leads with intention and influence, creating opportunities that have long been missing for aspiring beauty professionals. Read more>>
Julie Benac Patrick Laurin
Julie was in the cut and sew industry for many years, with a bachelor’s degree in fashion design (world’s second most useless degree!) After working in Detroit with the beloved non-profit The Empowerment Plan in production sewing, the move to artistic yarns, beautiful handwovens, and teaching developed over a few years. Read more>>
Bob Campbell
I’m a writer based in Flint, Mich. My debut novel, MOTOWN MAN, was published in November 2020 by Urban Farmhouse Press (Windsor, Ontario). My creative nonfiction, essays and novel excerpts have appeared in Michigan Quarterly Review, Belt Magazine, Forge Literary Magazine, Hypertext Magazine and Gravel Magazine I’ve also been a guest on the All Write in Sin City (podcast). Read more>>
Joe Laureano
I began performing dueling pianos at a piano bar in Columbus, Ohio while I was in college. At the time, I had no idea it would evolve into a 30-plus-year career. Read more>>
SylviaNicole Hubbert
Me becoming SylviaNicole was always apart of the plan I believe, I think it was more so about Gods timing than my timing. Read more>>
Marty Fleszar
We are Smoke and Fire. We are a husband-and-wife musical duo who pour our hearts into every note we create. Our music is born in the chaos and beauty of raising daughters, late-night heart-to-hearts, and the quiet moments where we’re just trying to hear God’s voice above the noise. Read more>>
Chelsea Smith
I’m Chelsea Smith, the owner of CNC Designs, a small business dedicated to creating customized pieces that help people express what makes them uniquely themselves. Creativity has always been a part of my life. I grew up watching my mom build her own customization business, designing custom cards that brought smiles to so many faces. Read more>>
Brian Cook
Born an raised in Muskegon. Come from a family of artists, carpenters and machinists. Art was encouraged at a young age. Using your imagination and hands to create something was something i developed a love for early on. My grandfather was a photographer and he passed down the passion for taking pictures. Read more>>
Rob Rossow
I was a pharmacist in Flint, MI for 30 years. The last 20 years I owned an independent retail pharmacy. In 2022 I sold the pharmacy and we planned a move to the Grand Rapids area because my adult children were living over here. Read more>>
Heidi Luokkanen
My journey started 23 years ago when my young family moved out of state and we were looking childcare. We struggled to find a place that we felt comfortable leaving our children; A place that we felt they were safe, well cared for and were getting time during their day to not only be children but also learn. Read more>>
Nadim Charara
I’ve always wanted to become a successful businessman. Growing up with alopecia taught me resilience early on, how to stay confident, stay focused, and push forward even when people doubted me. That attitude became the foundation of my work ethic. When I was 18, my father passed away very suddenly, and everything changed. I knew I had to step up for my family. Read more>>
Julian Prosser
I’ve been doing community service all my life— I started when I was a toddler living in Pontiac, Michigan helping my family with their volunteer work with the Jaycees. Throughout my youth I would volunteer at homeless shelters, soup kitchens, an art studio for people w disabilities, do food & clothes drives and random fundraising events for the Clarkston optimist club, special Olympics, and more. Read more>>
Carl Lundgren
CARL LUNDGREN and the GRANDE BALLROOM, DETROIT It’s 1966. My parents, so encouraged by my first crude attempts at art, were shocked at the idea of me actually becoming an artist! They relented when I indicated that I could learn art at “college” (something that they had been saving for while I was growing up). Read more>>
Alaina Miller
The highest commitment two people can make deserves a commitment just as strong from their photographer. That is why I am a wedding photographer — to help couples preserve the memories of the best day of their lives for the legacy that they will leave with future generations. I wasn’t always a wedding photographer. Read more>>
Samantha Mee
Growing up, I always felt a pull toward something deeper, something just beyond the surface of ordinary life. I spent most of my childhood outdoors, surrounded by the quiet companionship of nature, plants, and animals. Read more>>
Dymond Brown
Hello everyone I am Dymond Brown widely known as ‘Dymond Love Nails’. I have been a licensed nail technician for 8 years, and a licensed nail instructor for 3 years. I own two of the #1 nail salons in Lansing, MI called ‘Onyx Nail Company’ (2021). Read more>>
Milton Putman
Complete Dominance Athletics Our Story Complete Dominance Athletics began as a personal mission rooted in my own life experiences, faith, and passion for helping people become stronger mentally, physically, and spiritually. I started by training individuals and small groups in my community, focusing not only on physical conditioning but also on discipline, confidence, mindset, and emotional resilience. Read more>>
Anna Ngock
Gloss Nail Atelier started as Nail Gloss back in 2017 out of necessity and evolved from a 1200 SF space to a 3000 SF home for top tier Nail Artists. Read more>>
Tammy RaCosta
For more than 20 years, planning and decorating events has been one of my greatest passions. There is truly nothing more rewarding than seeing guests’ faces light up the moment they walk into a space I’ve designed. Watching their reactions—the surprise, the joy, and the appreciation for the atmosphere created—continues to inspire the work I do every day. Read more>>
Kelly Hassan
We perform throughout the year at many events such as the Michigan Renaissance Festival in Holly, MI, Canterbury Village Medieval Faire in Lake Orion, MI, Michigan Fantasy Fest in Saint Claire Shores, MI. We spin fire at Terrorfied Forest in Pinckney, MI , as well as other belly dance events, and private gatherings. Read more>>
Harley Wallen
My humble beginnings as a filmmaker was at the end of the film incentives in Michigan funny enough. Read more>>
